Second To None
by Eugene
Summary: Takes place after Slam Dunk, follows Ryonan and Shohoku. All comments are welcome! Disclaimer: I don't own Slam Dunk or any characters thereof.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

            Thump, thump, thump, the ball bounced up and down from his hand.  As he closed the distance to the basket, the dribble only got faster, nastier.  The ball danced lightly from his hands, to the ground , back to his hands, around his back, through his legs and back again.  Making figure eights, then intricate series of twists and turns, as if the ball was on a string.  Like a drum solo, the beats would get faster, slow down, only to speed up again.  His feet moved in concert with the ball, like Jazz musicians, improvising on the spot, never out of sync.  And it was like music, only you could see it, more so than hear it.  What was even more fascinating was that he never looked down at the ball.  Ever.

            There was no one on the court to bother Lee, and that's was understood.  Of course, it was six in the morning; everyone was just now getting ready for school.  That was fine with Lee.  He liked having the court to himself.  There would be no human defense today.  No, the defense consisted of the imperfections in the ground, the winds, the phantom players that Lee imagined would be there.

            The cool morning air chilled Lee, pressing the cold sweat soaked t-shirt to his chest, raising goose-bumps, trying it's best to distract him somehow, but to no avail.

            As Lee toed the three-point arc, he peered at his phantom defenders over the rim of his glasses, and past them at the basket.  With his right hand, he steadied the dribble to a leisurely pace, and with his left, swiped the sweat from his eyes and pushed his glasses up higher on to his nose, and looked at the basket one more time, then turned his attention to his defender.  He bent his knees, lowering his center of gravity.  Then, he took off.

            He speeded up the dribble, pushing the rhythm.  He put the ball into a series of maneuvers, slaloming through his legs, his arms snaking out to reel the ball back like the tentacles of an octopus, toying with his prey.

            Lee put the ball through his legs, right to left, and juked his body left, then exploded to his right, lowering his body more, crossing over back to his right.  The process took no more than a second.  Wasting no time, he closed the distance to about ten feet from the basket.  Stopping short, he jumped and pulled away from the hoop.  Twisting his body in the air to square himself to the hoop, he cocked the ball back near his forehead and extended his right arm, releasing the ball, snapping his wrist down so the ball had plenty of back spin.  The ball looped lazily towards the basket and sank into the rim silently.  Lee landed lightly on his feet, backpeddling slightly to keep his balance.  When he straightened up, he smiled in satisfaction, and running his hand through his short black hair, walked to pick up the ball which had now stopped bouncing and settled timidly on the ground.

            It went so for about a half-hour more, and when Lee went to his bag to check his watch, it read 6:46 A.M. with school starting in less than 15 minutes. 

            He took his sweat-soaked shirt off and wiped the sweat from his forehead, neck and chest.  Savoring the cool air against his slightly moist skin, Lee admired the sunrise.  The sun had begun to peek over the east side of the basketball court, the right hand side when Lee was facing the basket he was just playing on.  _Oh, geez, I'm gonna be late.  Pulling on a fresh t-shirt and over it a dress shirt and his school uniform and putting his slacks on right over his shorts, Lee checked his watch again, and smiled.  __Six fifty... Plenty of time.  Tightening his shoelaces, Lee slipped on his backpack and took off towards the school._


	2. Chapter 2

            Coming around the last corner, Lee could see the gates of Ryonan High school.  Lee glanced at his watch again, and for the fifth time that day wondered how he would get through life if he didn't have a watch.  _Six fifty-six, still plenty of people going in through the gates.  If I keep quiet, I probably won't get in to too much trouble.  Being a freshman new to this school, Lee got a lot of crap from the 2nd year students.  The 3rd years didn't get involved too much, but the 2nd year students apparently wanted to release their pent-up, "I got beat up a lot last year" anger, and the most appealing targets were the freshmen.  Lee was certain he could take care of them if they gave him trouble, but there was little time today, and with basketball try-outs starting soon, he didn't want to get marked as a troublemaker.  _

            Straightening out his glasses, and smoothing the sleeves of his uniform, he slipped in through the crowd, keeping his head down.  Elbows jostled, bodies bumped, and Lee was pushed to the entrance of the school more than he walked.  Things were relatively going well until two-hands landed heavily on his shoulders and roughly pulled him over to the side.  Between the backpack and the hands pulling him along, Lee lost his balance and stumbled over somebody's feet.  Catching himself on his hands, he got up again, and dusted his hands off.  When he raised his head, he saw five guys surrounding him.  Looking around, Lee saw that most of the students had gone into school, only a few still loitering outside.  A gruff voice spoke up from in front of him.

            "How's going, son?"  The mocking undertone stripped the question of all pleasantness.   

            "It's going well, senpai," Lee answered, using a term to address an older student.  Lee looked carefully at each of the second year students surrounding him.  In the days previous, ever since the opening day, Lee had heard of a gang of 2nd year students who bullied and terrorized the freshmen.  He had even seen the student in passing once before.  _This one, as a matter of fact._

            "I forgot to bring my lunch money today, and I was hoping you could lend me some money."  The tone of the voice told Lee that this guy wasn't _hoping for anything.  He intended on taking Lee's money whether or not Lee agreed._

            Lee shook his head.  "I don't have any money today either, senpai.  Gomen nasai."

            Harsh laughter greeted his apology.  The leader, the one Lee came to identify as Hothead, by the arrogant tone of the guys voice and the obvious malice, moved towards Lee and put his hand on the back of Lee's neck in a mockery of a comradely gesture.

            "Well, I'm glad you're sorry, but that hardly solves anything.  Now, give us what little money you have, and we'll let you go on with your insignificant life."

            Lee smelt a mixture of cigarette and peppermint gum on the older boy's breath.  Lee's eyes hardened.  He had to let these guys know now that he wasn't going to take this crap from them.  "No," Lee let a little edge drift into his voice, "I'm not going to pay feed insignificant bugs like you."  Lee knew any reply along those lines was stupid but he wanted to get the message across.

            "Are you kidding?"  Hothead looked at him as if he had grown three heads.  "You didn't just say what I heard," he said, as if telling Lee the facts.

            "Yes, I did," Lee spoke slowly, as one would to someone who wasn't very bright.

            'You're just asking beat down today."  With that Hothead shoved Lee roughly to the ground.  Off balanced by his back pack, Lee tumbled and fell to one knee, catching himself on the dirt ground with one hand.  Laughter scoured him.  Lee shrugged off his backpack and slowly stood up.  He dusted his hands off on his pant legs.  When he looked at his palms, they were scraped slightly and drops of dark blood oozed out to mix with the thin layer of dirt covering his hands.  

            Lee lifted his hands, palms facing his attackers, and backed up.  "Look, I really don't want to fight.  Just leave me alone."

            Hothead actually appeared to be considering the idea.  His head came up.  "No, I don't think I'll do that."  He stepped forward with his fists clenched and held by his head.  Lee tried to back up but Hotheads cronies had effectively blocked his way.  _So much for staying out of trouble.  Lee silently cursed his big mouth, and brought his hands up to ward off any blows, looking for the first chance to run.  __What's the rule when you're fighting someone bigger than you?  Lee thought with a grin.  __Get one good punch in and run the other way._

_            "Hey!  What's going on here?"  A smooth and gentle voice spoke from the back.  Despite the gentle tone, there was plenty of authority in the voice, demanding attention.  When Lee turned around he saw a young man walking, no, strolling, towards them.  He was quite tall, one hand his pocket, the other holding the backpack strap, the backpack draping over one shoulder.  His hair, though, was the most notable attribute.  Dark and gelled straight up, it stood about 7cm tall.  The boy's face was calm, almost cheerful, but his dark blue eyes gazed at the circle of people intently._

            "This doesn't concern you, Sendoh," Hothead said, taking a moment to look in Sendoh's direction.  He turned his attention back toward Lee.  "It's between me and the boy."

            "Uh-huh.  So you're saying that I should just ignore this and walk away, as if nothing happened."  Sendoh's dark eyebrows furrowed in deep thought.  "No... I don't think I can do that.  You see, I don't like violence going on in my school, and quite frankly, if I walk away, that's probably what'll happen.  If you hurt the kid, I might even lose sleep over it."  Sendoh kept on strolling towards the group and positioned himself between the two would-be combatants.  He faced Hothead.  "This ends now."

            Hothead stared back.  Almost as tall, even with the hair and bulkier than Sendoh's sleek frame, he seemed to weigh his chances against Sendoh.  Sendoh simply stared right back, with that piercing gaze that seemed to look right through his opponent.  His voice hardened.  "Go."

            Hothead broke off the stare.  He looked to his comrades and said, "Guys, we're done here.  Let's go." He and his gang turned around and stalked off, to find another prey, or perhaps to go to the back to smoke.

            Sendoh turned and faced the younger man.  "Hello, my name is Akira Sendoh."  Sendoh extended his hand towards the youth and looked straight into his eyes.

            "Yeah, I know," Lee answered.  And he did, too.  Anyone going to Ryonan High had better have heard of Akira Sendoh.  Proclaimed a basketball genius and a high caliber athlete, Sendoh had led his Ryonan team to the Kanagawa Finals before falling to Shohoku and Kainan in the double elimination tournament.  He led his team in scoring and minutes played last year, and with the absence of former captain, Jun Uozumi, the team depended on their Ace even more.  He looked at Sendoh's face and saw a hint of dejection.  He wondered for a moment why, then he suddenly remembered the hand that Sendoh offered.  He quickly took Sendoh's hand.  Sendoh's long fingers wrapped around his hand in a firm grip, and Lee winced as his hand started to sting.  The pain snapped Lee out of his awe of Sendoh and he remembered the scrapes on his hand and pulled politely out of the handshake.  He grinned sheepishly and apologized, "Sorry, Sendoh senpai."

            Sendoh smiled easily, "It's okay, just a little blood and dirt, what we're all made of."  He simply wiped his hand on his pant leg.  "And you are...?"

            Lee looked up from picking up his backpack.  "Lee.  Otoshi Lee."  He scratched the back of his head and smiled.  "Thanks for stepping in, there.  I don't think I could have managed as well as you did."

            "Well, you would've managed."

            "I might have, but I'd have gotten more than a few scratches on my palm."  Lee grimaced as he thought of his game plan.  "Again, thank you, senpai."

            Sendoh put his hands in his pockets and shrugged, "No problem," he said with a sloppy grin, "all in a day's work for a hero."  He chuckled and Lee was infected as well by Sendoh's easy-going and friendly attitude.  "You're just lucky I came into school late, " Sendoh added.

            "Oh, crap," Lee exclaimed.  "I'm gonna be late.  I gotta go, I'll see you later, senpai."

            "You're already late, take your time," Sendoh said.

            "Yeah, thanks, bye!"

            "Alright, later"  Sendoh just chuckled and shook his head.  Fixing his backpack on his shoulder, he strolled lazily towards the big tree in the courtyard for a little nap.


	3. Chapter 3

            Sakuragi Hanamichi was trying his best not to look as bored as he felt.  All summer was spent working on his back injury, and even now, he had to go periodically for physical therapy.  _Physical therapy.  Puh!  That's ridiculous.  Tensai does not need physical therapy.  Despite feeling that way, it had been quite a miracle that he had healed as quickly and as well as he had.  Hanamichi had to admit, the doctors had done quite a job on his back, and the better news was that he was going to be fully healed by the time basketball season started.  _

            The weeks when his back was receiving intense treatment had been pure terror.  It wasn't the pain, no, Tensai could handle the pain.  It was the severe lack of exposure to basketball.  It was worse than the pain in his back.  It felt as if a part of him was missing, and quite frankly, it was.  Basketball, which had begun as merely a way to impress girls, had now become an important part of him.  _It'll feel great to have a basketball back in my hand again.  It's been so long.  The closest he ever came to contact with the sport was watching it on TV.  For a time, he watched it for enjoyment, then critically, examining the players carefully, making an account of each move they made, mistakes, and what he could do to add to his game.  Occasionally, the Japan Junior National team games had been broadcast on TV, and at times, Kaede Rukawa would be playing.  Kaede Rukawa, the fox.  __He only made it because I was unavailable due to my back injury.  Next year, it's over for you Fox._

            Recently, the games on TV were just reminding Hanamichi of what he had lost.  In frustration, he had stopped watching the games altogether, concentrating harder on the physical therapy, working harder to get back to basketball, his one true love.  

            Hanamichi ran his hand through his hair.  He had shaven it following the fatal mistake he made against Kainan High and kept it short.  After Kanagawa Trials, however, his hair had grown out, and he had never thought to cut it again.  Now it was a tangled mess.  _Maybe I should shave it short again.  It was easier to maintain, then._

            What little exposure he got to basketball was reinforced by the letters from Akagi Haruko, Takenori Akagi's sister.  As the new assistant manager to Ayako, Haruko kept Hanamichi updated on information about the team.  Miyagi Ryota had become the captain of the team, only in Hanamichi's absence, no doubt.  Hisashi Mitsui senpai had returned to the team, to further pursue his studies before he went off to college.  The former MVP had slipped off track for a bit when he broke his leg during a game and had become one of the thugs that had been terrorizing the school.  Well, not really terrorizing.  Just more than a nuisance.  After an incident that involved Hanamichi, Rukawa, and Coach Anzai, Mitsui forsook his evil path and returned to basketball.  That had been a welcome addition since Mitsui had been a sharp shooter from beyond the 3 point arc.  Anything inside the halfcourt line was fair game for him.  He had been a tremendous help and Haruko was glad to have him back for one more year.  _Not that Tensai needs that much help at all, in the first place._

            There would be a new crop of freshmen coming to join the team, and only few would make it.  Shohoku, in light of the degree of success in the Kanagawa Trials last year, had higher hopes for the team this year.  With the absence of the leadership and experience as well as the presence that Takenori Akagi had provided last year as captain, there was more pressure on Hanamichi.  _Tensai can certainly take the reins of this team.  With me, the team will win the Nationals, no doubt.  And because of those higher expectations, Ayako and Anzai-sensei had decided it would be best to hold try-outs for who would make the team.  It's elitist, yes.  If that system had been applied last year, Hanamichi would never have made the basketball team, never learning the joy of basketball, never spending the time with Haruko.  That made Hanamichi think about the try-outs.  Was it really fair?  He couldn't doubt the necessity of it; they needed good people, people who had already learned the game before._

            The basketball season would start within the week, and the returning starters would already be on the team.  Hanamichi couldn't wait to see who would come to join the team.  He also couldn't wait to see Haruko again.  Occasionally, she had come to visit him at the hospital, and they would talk all day about basketball.  Recently, the visits had decreased, replaced by the letters.  He understood; school was starting, and she was busy.  Still, he missed Haruko's quite voice, radiant smile, and her kind attitude.  This year was going to be good for him.  He knew it.


	4. Chapter 4

            Lee sat in the classroom, in the hard uncomfortable wooden seats.  He had his notebook out open in front of him.  The Sensei was writing furiously on the board, explaining as he went, about the American Civil War.  Having lived in America for a bit as a child, he understood quite a bit about American history.  Thus, this period bored him out of his mind.  History had always just come to him, and he understood it instinctively.  Presumably, he would have been taking notes, but in this class, he was just making nonsense pictograms in his notebook, half-hearing what the teacher was, at least to him, mumbling.  He put his pencil now between his index and middle finger and spun it.  He wasn't really spinning it, but the rotation of his wrist made the pencil twirl, creating this illusion of it's rotation.  _This is insanely boring.  He looked at his watch.  __2:12, almost over.  He ticked off the homework he had in his head.  __No math, no grammar, no Physics, thank god, a little bit of this and English, great._

            Lee put his pencil down and squirmed in his seat.  The seats made him so uncomfortable.  _Every goddamn minute I spend in this chair, my spinal column gets more warped out of shape.  This can't be healthy.  He glanced once more at his watch and saw that he had no more than 30 seconds left of the class.  He quickly closed his notebook filled with nonsense symbols and stuffed it into his bag, closing the zipper.  He slid his pencil back into his pocket and was almost half way out of his seat when the teacher turned to him. _

            "So quick to leave us, Lee-kun?" the teacher asked mockingly.  Muffled giggles came from the back of the classroom, and Lee smiled easily.

            "Wouldn't dream of leaving before time's up, Sensei."  The last word coincided with the bell and Lee shrugged at the teacher as he got up.  "I'll see you tomorrow."

            "Yes, Lee-kun, you will, and you'll be the last one to leave class tomorrow."  With that, the teacher went to his desk to gather up his belongings to leave.  Lee just shook his head and joined the crowd of people walking towards the main exit. 

            "Hey! How's it going, Lee?"  Lee turned to the voice and saw that it was Hideyoshi, one of his first friends coming to this school.  Lee lifted his hand, and waved at his friend with a smile and turned around to continue on his way.  Not looking where he was going, he almost collided with a young man a bit taller than he was.  He stopped short and side stepped the contact.  Lee almost smiled in relief when he tripped over someone just out of his sight.  Again over balanced by his backpack, he fell to the ground, banging his knee on his way down.  _I seem to be spending a lot of time on the floor today, he thought wryly.  He turned to look up at the person whom he ran over.  Smiling down at him was a young girl about his age, 16, not very tall, perhaps 5' 8" and rich chestnut hair spilling down over her shoulders.  She was lean and shapely, not super-model skinny, but not heavy set.  She wouldn't have been considered a classic beauty by any means, her jaws were a little too squarish, but her smile was absolutely radiant, and her deep blue eyes made her more exquisitely beautiful._

            "Are you okay?"  Lee was far too enraptured by her smile and her eyes to answer.  The girl knelt down beside him and repeated the question, "Are you okay?"

            Lee quickly recovered his wits and put on a crooked smile, "Yeah, I'm okay, thanks."

            "I'm sorry, I should have been more careful," she said.

            Lee shook his head, "No, don't worry about it, I should have looked where I was going."  Lee wiped his hands on his pants as he stood up and gathered his belongings.  He offered his hand to the girl now standing in front of him.  "I'm Otoshi Lee."  He looked firmly into her eyes and smiled gently.

            "I'm Akari Minou."  She reached out and took the hand that Lee had offered.  Gripping his hand softly, Minou looked back into Lee's eyes and saw him wince slightly.  Minou recoiled and pulled her hand away.

            Lee shrugged his shoulders and smiled wryly as he looked down at his scraped palms.  "It stings a little, but nothing really big to worry about."

            "How'd you get it?"

            "I fell once before," Lee said quietly, almost embarrassed.

            A smirk played on her lips and her eyes twinkled with amusement.  "Spend a lot of time on the ground, do you?"

            _Well, no, not all the time...  Lee's head seemed to droop even lower.  "No," he said meekly._

            "Okay," Minou replied, chuckling.  "I'll see you later, maybe."

            Lee's head came up with a radiant smile, "Maybe."

            "Great, bye," she said, walking away.

            Lee put up his hand and opened his fingers to wave.  Gathering up his stuff, he also walked away.


	5. Chapter 5

            Lee strolled away from the school, his mind still on the girl he had tripped over.  Her smile, her pleasant scent that comforted him, her voice, they were all still fresh in his mind.  A few minutes later, he was _still grinning like an idiot.  __Oh geez, I've got to calm down.  Lee shook his head slowly.  __I hope I see her again.  He chuckled quietly to himself.  __I've only just met this girl.  I'm being ridiculous.  _

            Walking slowly, he thought about his nanny.  With his parents in the United States, for the time being, Lee was sent back to Japan to stay with his nanny.  He had grown up under her, and she was his mother moreso than his blood mother.  Not that he loved his real mother any less, it was just that he was extremely comfortable with his nanny, and loved her very much.  Also, living with only his nanny gave Lee so much more freedom than he used to have, under his parents.  Nanny had always trusted him, and respected him.  Lee would do nothing to betray that trust.

            As he continued to walk and reflect on his life here so far, he was soon distracted by a familiar sound.  He heard the rhythmic pounding that ran through the ground and ran up through Lee's legs, up to his heart, calling to him, like the booming drums of some African tribe.  Lee also noted the periodic shouts, hoots and laughter.  As far as Lee knew, somebody's playing basketball.  Drawn to the sound as bees are drawn to flowers, Lee slowly derailed from his original course, and towards the noise.  He soon came upon the court that he had been playing on this morning.  Unlike this morning, however, the court was filled with people, hanging on the cage that surrounds the court.  Some, on their bikes that they rode to get here, some sitting on the ground, or on the basketball that they brought.  All of their attention, however, was focused on the game on the court.

            10 players, of varying sizes, some fat, some skinny, tall or short, were running.  Each of them playing a unique instrument in the great concert, putting on a show.  Lee immediately shifted his demeanor, paying a closer attention to the game.  He watched the game with a critical eye, analyzing the opposition, breaking them down, looking for their weaknesses.  Lee scolded himself.  Basketball shouldn't be the object of such butchering.  Especially playground ball.  It was a group, no, a family of ballers, putting forth their best talents on the altar of worship.  _This was art.  It flowed from the heart, penetrated every cell of every player, controlling them, sculpting them into a perfect masterpiece.  Like any spectator, all Lee had to do, all he could do was just sit back, relax and enjoy the show, 'cuz he won't see another one quite like it._

            Lee put his bag down on the ground and looked around for a pay phone; he was gonna be late tonight.  Frustrated, he asked around for a cell-phone.  One thing everyone had, especially now, was a cell-phone.  Relatively easily, he found one and quickly called his Nanny.

            "Hello, Nanny?" Lee asked into the phone.

            "Yes, Lee, is this you?"  Nanny's warm voice filled the reciever and poured into his ear.

            "Hai, Nanny.  Listen, I'm going to be a bit late today.  Actually, I won't be home until after dark."

            Nanny knew instantly that when Lee said that, it meant usually that he would be out playing basketball.  She also realized that even if the sun did go down, Lee was most likely going to stay and play some more.  She nodded.

            "Sure, Otoshi, just make sure you don't get hurt, or starve yourself."

            "I will. Thanks, Nanny."  Lee terminated the connection and returned the phone to the owner.  "How many people called next?"

            "Um.... I don't know, a bunch of people."  Calling _next was playground jargon for who was playing the next game.  The winner stayed on, and the loser went off.  In a crowd this large, you either had to win, or didn't get to play anymore.  _

            "All right, let me get the next game available."  

            The owner of the cell-phone just shrugged, not taking his eyes off the game.  Lee likewise turned his attention back to the game.  He looked for someone he recognized.

            "Game point!" someone called out.  One of the players, wearing a white, Nike headband on his head, stopped his dribble and walked to a few feet away from the three-point arc.  He ran his hand through his dark hair and pushed it away from his eyes.  He waited for the players to gather themselves and then "checked" the ball.  A playground tradition, "checking" the ball meant the offensive team would, after play was stopped, give the ball to the opposing team, preferably his own defender.  The defender, in turn, would return the ball when he felt that his team was ready, thus "checking" that everything was in order.  

            "Ball's live," the guy in the headband called out.  He slowly dribbled the ball and passed it to a teammate.  The "rules" stated that the ball had to be passed at least once before it could be shot.  The teammate, who was wearing a sleeveless black shirt that had the Adidas logo on his left breast, moved right to left, or from Lee's point of view, towards him. Then, without warning, he lobbed the ball up towards the basket.  Lee immediately thought it was going to be an alley-oop pass, when the ball was thrown up by the basket, for a teammate to catch and shoot in the air, or catch and dunk it.  Lee slowly shook his head.  _It's too far and too high up.  No one can catch that.  Nothing prepared him for what happened next.  The guy in the headband, perhaps 5 centimeters taller than Lee was, swung around the perimeter, and around a pick set by his teammate.  He jumped about 5 feet outside the paint, which put him about 8 feet away from the basket and __soared.  He seemed to elevate continuously, his feet about at chest height to one of the players.  He reached up and back to grip the ball firmly in two hands, and brought it down with punishing force into the basket.  Time seemed mired in molasses.  He gripped the rim and swung his legs around letting the momentum carry him around to the other side.  Palpable silence gripped the crowd as everyone watched in absolute amazement._

            "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"  The crazed roar from the dunker, induced by a rush of adrenaline, broke the silence like a stone shattering glass.  The broken pieces fell and roared.  He finally descended from the clouds and glared down his opponent.  "Game."

            His opponent just hung and shook his head.  When his head came back up, he was wearing a sloppy grin.  He extended his hand.  "Great game, bro,"

            Headband's face also split into a grin as he accepted the hand.  He looked back and challenged.  "Who got next?"

            Lee thought for a second that the shadow in the corner was moving.  From the shadows, a figure stood up.  The mysterious figure walked cat like from his perch.  When Lee could finally see the figure clearly, he saw a tall boy, at least a head taller than himself.  He had the whitest skin.  A white elbow pad on his left arm eccentuated his slender elbow.  His black hair fell into his eyes, obscuring them slightly.  The boy had a passive expression on his face.  His face was extremely white, almost feminine.  Though the hair that shrouded his eyes, Lee could still make out the piercing gaze.  Lee was almost about to pass off the boy as just another player, when his memory smacked him upside the head.  He turned to look at the boy again and recognized him.  _Kaede Rukawa..._


	6. Chapter 6

            The boy in the Nike headband wasn't smiling any more.  His name was Motochi Kanata, a.k.a the Show.  He had earned that name when he was 13 years old.  He couldn't yet dunk, but he had crazy handles and such creativity that earned him that title.  His growth spurt had endowed him with freakish athleticism.  Combined with his creativity and ill skills, at the age of 16, he was called the _Big Show.  He had, as many young ball players in Japan was expected to have, heard of Kaede Rukawa.  Known as the __Ace of Shohoku, he had been named as one of the five best in Kanagawa Trials, and as Rookie of the Year in the trials.  Every hoop-fan had been raving about this kid.  He had been crucial in the Shohoku win against number 1 ranked Sannoh, beating Eiji Sawakita, titled the Best Player in Japan.  All of these personal accolades, Kanata knew, meant absolutely nothing on the playgrounds.  You brought your game, not your awards.  Still, the reputation was worth the challenge._

            "All right," Kanata said, after watching Rukawa for a moment.  "Take a minute to warm up, while I take a little breather."  Rukawa didn't seem to hear him at first, but then met Kanata's gaze.  Kanata wondered for a second if this guy was going to say something, but Rukawa just turned around and walked towards the basket, to warm up, presumably.  Kanata just sighed and walked off to the side to get a drink of water.

            A few minutes later, the game was joined.  On his team, Kanata had the boy wearing the Adidas shirt, another wearing a blue jersey, and a tall lanky boy wearing a white Nike shirt.  The last one was a stout, fat man of 28.  He was an old hand on the playgrounds, and as far as Kanata knew, his name was Big Smooth.

            The other team consisted of Kaede Rukawa, an older man in a green sleeveless shirt, two guys wearing NBA jerseys, one wearing Sprewell, and the other, Kobe.  The final member was a big man, his demeanor and the way he carried himself reminded Kanata of a grizzly bear, so in his mind, Kanata tagged the man as Bear.

            Kanata assessed the match up in his mind.  Smooth would have to match up against Spree.  Nike would match up with Bear, Adidas with Green.  That left Blue, but Kanata would not match him up with Rukawa, for reputation sake.  He would guard Rukawa and Blue would have to guard Kobe.

            As it was, the winning team from the previous game would maintain possession to start the game.  Kanata picked up the ball, and headed to the half court line, met by Rukawa.  His team would go from left to right, at least from Lee's point of view, who was still watching the game.  This meant they would head away from the setting sun, a good thing anytime.  

            Kanata "checked" the ball to Rukawa and he returned it.  Kanata looked to his right, where Big Smooth was popping out to behind the three-point arc.  He passed it to Smooth.  Once he got the ball, Smooth backed up a step and started dribbling the ball through his legs from his right hand to his left, left leg in front, then, reversed the pattern left to right, with the right leg in front.  He did this for a few seconds then started to make his move.  Big Smooth lowered his posture as well as his dribble.  He stared into the eyes of Spree and began dribbling the ball back and forth through his legs.  Then shifting his weight and the ball to the right, he faked and crossed over left, further lowering his center of gravity.  Adidas' man, Green, had left him and came over to double team as Smooth beat Spree.  Seeing, or feeling Green coming up to his left side, Smooth spun away from him, and back towards Spree.  But, half way through the spin, he passed the ball through his legs again, away from the reaching hand of Spree.  With the ball in his right hand, he completed the spin, throwing the ball behind his back, and a leading a cutting Adidas to the basket with a behind the back, no look dish.  Adidas caught the ball and laid it in, for a point.  Kanata never ceased to be amazed with Big Smooth's sick skills.  When he drove the lane, Smooth some how contorted and warped his 5' 9' 210 pound frame to slip through the defense like a greased pig.  When he passed the ball, it was uncanny how he saw everyone on the court that was out of his line of sight.

            Spree inbounded the ball to Rukawa, who, without waiting for anyone else, rushed to the other end of the court, towards the sun.  Kanata faced up on him.  "Come on, now, school boy, let's see you got.  Come on."

            Rukawa didn't respond.  As a matter of fact, he didn't seem to even hear Kanata.  Lee watched as Rukawa went to work.  Keeping his head up, Rukawa eyed the basket.  He lowered his posture and just exploded.  Kanata was taken aback by the sheer ferocity of the attack.  Rukawa swooped around to his right, passing Kanata on his left.  Met by Blue, who came over to help out on defense, he simply spun, pivoting on his left foot.  He switched the dribble to his left hand, and faced up against Adidas.  Rukawa clutched the ball closer to his body, and took a skip step around Adidas, and landed with two feet to a stop.  The moment his feet touched the ground, he exploded into the air.  He twisted his body, so his back was facing Nike, who had come over as well in an effort, albeit futile, to stop him.  Rukawa's back made contact with Nike's body and Rukawa extended his right arm, and with it the ball, to wrap around Nike and lay it into the basket for two.

            On the next possession, Blue took a mid-range jumper off a Adidas pass, but missed.  Bear grabbed the rebound, and passed out to Rukawa.  Rukawa passed the half court line and waited for his teammates.  He passed to Kobe, who tried to tip-pass the ball inside to Bear.  However, Big Smooth cut in and stole the ball.  Taking one dribble, he fired the ball to Kanata on the left wing, who had already taken off.  Kanata received the pass and took one dribble before taking off from just outside the lane on the left side.  He leapt and palmed the ball in his right hand.  He seemed to glare at the basket as he passed it, going left to right.  He pulled the ball down between his legs and windmilled it back up, cocking it way back before cramming it hard into the basket with his right hand as he passed on the right side.  He landed, and almost tripped because of the momentum.  He caught himself on his right hand and recovered, looking to the sideline as if pitying all the earthbound mortals.

            And play continued; teams traded baskets and misses, but neither really seemed to get out ahead, by too much.  Finally, after about 15 minutes, Kanata called out, "Game point, 14-13, us"

            Rukawa spoke, "Win by two?"

            Kanata looked at him, surprised to find out that he indeed could talk.  "Yeah, win by two, or straight 21."  _Straight 21 meant that if the winner was not decided after 15 points, it would go until somebody won by 2 more points, or scored 21points, which ever one came first._

            Kaede Rukawa simply nodded and crouched into a defensive posture.  Again, Kanata checked the ball, and passed it into Nike, who had popped out by the "elbow", where the freethrow line met with the boundary of the paint area, on the right side.  Nike, with his back facing the basket, kept the ball up by his face.  Seeing Adidas cut to the basket, he whipped it around his back for a bounce pass that landed neatly in Adidas' hands.  It looked as if Adidas would have it to win the game as he went up for a lay-up.  However, as Adidas went up, so did Rukawa.  He reached out with his slender arms and swatted the ball away, bouncing it against the glass.  As soon as he came down, he jumped again, grabbed the ball, and sprinted down court.

            Kanata also hauled ass down court and tried to snake the ball loose from Rukawa from behind, but Rukawa switched the dribble to his left hand, away from Kanata's reaching fingers.  As he closed to the basket, Nike had already gotten there.  Rukawa, either not seeing Nike or neglecting him, leaped straight up at the basket.  Nike came up with him, and swatted at the ball.  As much as Nike knew, that should have been a clean block.  However, Nike only fanned at air.  He came down and turned to look for the ball.  As he turned to face the basket, he saw the ball falling through the twine, and with it, his ego, as well.

            The quiet assault seemed to accumulate like an impending storm and all its weight came crashing down on Kanata.  They were just one point away from defeating the Ace but instead, the tables were turned.  In the space of less than a minute, Rukawa had scored two baskets, with apparent ease, and now Kanata was in a hurry to score.  For the first time, Kanata felt the pressures of playing against Kaede Rukawa.  Suddenly, cheers erupted from his right.

            "Go Rukawa!"

            "Rukawa, we love you!"

            "I want to have your child!!!"

            Kanata turned to face the noise and saw a group of ten or so girls, still in their school uniforms, screaming their devotions to Rukawa.  It was the notorious Rukawa's Fan Brigade.  Legend had it that Rukawa, even as a freshman, with his handsome looks and his cool, or cold, depending on your view, demeanor attracted tremendous attention from the girls.  Hence, the Rukawa's Fan Brigade.  They were present at every game, screaming their hearts out, disheartening opponents, and scaring the Shohoku squad.  Kanata felt a sweatdrop forming at the back of his neck, and looked in disbelief at the girls.  _Don't they have anything better to do?  How did they know he was playing here anyway?  The Brigade's ability to find Rukawa was uncanny, bordering on stalking.  Kanata glanced sidelong at Rukawa, who, despite the chaos, seemed completely calm.  Like ice.  __Duck on a pond, Kanata thought.  __On the surface, he's gliding smoothly, but under the water, those feet are furiously pedaling.  _

            Kanata was abruptly brought out of his reverie as Adidas tapped him on the shoulder.  "Game point, Kanata.  We gotta score this one."

            "Yeah, I know," Kanata answered.  He took the ball to the top of the key, checked it and put it into play.  He passed it to Big Smooth, and immediately called it back.  Once he got the ball back, he back dribbled out to beyond the three point arc, where he was met by Rukawa.

            "I got your game right here, preppy," Kanata said, a wicked smile playing on his lips.  He thrusted right, then pulled back, jerking left and spinning back right.  When he came out of the spin, he got an open look at the basket.  Without hesitating, he pulled up for the jumper from 15 feet out.  Even as his fingers released the ball, Rukawa had already recovered, tipping the ball up and out of his hand.  He touched down and leapt again, grabbing the ball, and took off towards the opposite side of the court.  Rukawa's sheer speed was unmatched by anyone else, as Rukawa had the ball all to himself on a break away.  The cheers from the Brigade on the sidelines foreshadowed the impending thunder, as Rukawa gathered himself, took to the air and threw down a monster slam to win the game.

            Kanata could only shake his head.  It was really illogical, of course, that he could have beaten Rukawa.  He had given his best, and came up short.  Next time, though, it'd be different.  He walked over to Rukawa, and extended his hand.  "Good game, preppie."

            Kanata half expected Rukawa to snub him, but Rukawa accepted his hand and nodded.


	7. Chapter 7

            Lee had been watching the game from the sidelines, and never before had he ever seen such raw skill, power, and competition.  He was somewhat intimidated, not only about playing here, but playing in the league, with such competition.  Lee smiled.  His heart started beating faster, and everything else seemed magnified, every sound, amplified.  He felt adrenaline rushing through his veins like subterranean gushers coursing through the catacombs.  Lee was almost giddy with anticipation.  But, his chance never came.  More games were played, and Kaede Rukawa ripped through the teams with ease.  The girls were _still screaming.  __Don't their vocal cords get tired?.  The sun slowly crept back into his bed beyond the western horizon and the crowd, one by one walked off, and Lee was left standing alone, the whistling wind, further emphasizing his loneliness._

            Lee sighed.  He would not get to play today.  Once everyone had left, he pulled his own Spalding ball out of his backpack.  He ran his fingers along the seams, and over the smooth, worn grips.  He stripped out of his school uniform and down to his shorts and T-shirt.  He started dribbling, warming up.  Then, he proceeded to imitate some of the maneuvers from the previous games.  The cross-overs, the pull up jumpers, spin moves.  Half an hour later, the court had gotten too dark to see.  Lee walked over to his bag, put the ball in, and pulled on his school uniform shirt and proceeded to pull his pants on, when his eyes caught a figure a few feet away.  Lee was surprised out of his mind, and once again, tripped over his pants that were around his knees and spilled on his back with all the grace of a rock.  He landed on his tail bone.  Pain shot up his spine, exploded his brain and back down again, making Lee gasp.  _Damn, third time today.  I might as well stay down this time.  Recovering and pulling his pants on completely, he looked at the figure again.  This time, the shadow had moved closer; close enough for him to make out the face.  Akari Minou._

            "Caught you with your pants down, have I?"  Lee could imagine the smirk on that pretty face.

            "More or less.  But not for the reasons you think."  Lee replied, forcing a chuckle.

            "I certainly hope not."

            Lee slowly stood and faced her.  "So, what are you doing here?"

            Minou reached down and picked up Lee's backpack.  "I was studying a little later today, and I was just on my way home.  I heard you playing and came to see who it was."  She paused.  "I hope I didn't scare you too much."

            "Well, as a matter of fact, you did."  Lee winced slightly as pain flared up again.  "I wasn't expecting anybody, especially this late."

            Minou shrugged.  "I really wasn't expecting anyone to be playing basketball this late, either."  She paused.  "Do you do this often?"

            "You mean playing out this late?"  Lee waited for Minou to affirm the statement.  She nodded.  Lee continued, "Well, no, I don't do this regularly.  But sometimes, when I have the time, and I feel like it, yeah."

            "Uh huh."  Minou glanced at her silver watch that surrounded her lean wrist.  "Oh, look at the time.  I have to go, I'll see you later."  She turned around and started to walk away.  

            Off to his right, Lee heard faint howling of the dogs.  The cold night winds whistled and caressed his arms.  The darkness surrounded him like a blanket.  "Wait!"  Lee called out.  Lee slung his backpack over his shoulder and quickly ran after her.  "Can I walk you home?"

            The young girl stopped and turned.  "Sure, I guess."  She paused for a moment before continuing.  "Didn't you think I could take care of myself?

            "No, that's not it at all.  Actually, I'm kinda afraid for me."  Lee looked around at the looming darkness, interrupted by patches of light from the street lamps.  Lee offered Minou his arm.  "Shall we?"

            "Certainly."  Minou accepted his arm with a smirk on her face.


	8. Chapter 8

            A few weeks had passed; spring gave way to more sunshine.  More importantly, basketball try-outs had started.  Miyagi Ryota was feeling a little giddier today than usual.  Ryota sauntered over to the gym, the hallways highlighted by the sunshine leaking through the windows.  His front-parted gelled hair, a pair of sunglasses, despite being inside, and an earring in his left ear, along with his silver chain, made Ryota every bit the stereotypical thug that he was.  Before basketball, that is.

            Miyagi Ryota had been a troublesome kid.  Like Sakuragi Hanamichi, he had started basketball only to impress a girl.  Unlike Hana, he was short.  A generous 168 centimeters.  He couldn't jump particularly high.  Still, his small frame and blinding footspeed, combined with his dribbling assured him a spot on the team.  And as he stayed on the team, his love for the sport grew, along with his skills.

            Then, it all just went downhill from there.  He got into a fight with Hishashi Mitsui, another ballplayer turned thug.  During a fight on the school roof top between Ryota and Mitsui with his gang, Ryota, realizing that he was outmatched, concentrated his assault on Mitsui, who was the leader.  Mitsui lost two front teeth, and was hospitalized.  Mitsui's gang had brutalized Ryota and gave him a concussion.

            Upon returning from the hospital, Ryota had tried to return to basketball.  Much to his pleasure, Ryota found that the time off had not dulled his skills too much.  Which is when he met Hanamichi.  Their violent nature had initially made them enemies, but once they learned the reason for joining the team, they found a kindred spirit and had become friends since then.  Ryota went as far as to teach Hana some basic fake moves.  Then, Mitsui's gang had returned to the gym to wreak havoc.  A fight ensued, and with the help of Hanamichi's friends, they had managed to hold them off.  Then, Anzai-sensei entered the gym, the basketball coach.  Mitsui, upon seeing Anzai, dropped to his knees and begged for forgiveness and another chance to play basketball.

            Anzai sensei gave in.  Mitsui and Ryota made their peace, and Shohoku became stronger than before.  Combined with the leadership of Akagi, the fabulous skills of Rukawa, the raw athleticism of Hanamichi, the sharpshooting of Mitsui, and Ryota's playmaking skills, Shohoku High had defeated the Number 1 seed Sannoh, despite losing the next match.

            Since then, Akagi graduated, leaving the captaincy to Ryota.  It was a big pair of shoes to fill.  Akagi was a center, Ryota was a point guard.  Ryota wondered if he could hold the same type of authority that Akagi did.  Mitsui had returned to finish his studies, and Rukawa would be back.  Hanamichi had recovered and would be there at the try-outs.  And Ayako.  Oh, sweet Ayako.  She had been the reason he joined the team.  Much to his dimay, though, Ayako never seemed to pay much attention to him.  But this year, maybe being captain would draw her attention.

            _Basketball try-outs will begin soon.  Gotta hurry.  It wouldn't do if the captain was late the first day of practice.  Ryota hurried his pace.  In the space of a few minutes, Ryota reached the gym doors.  Pausing a moment to gather himself and make himself look presentable, he reached for the door handle and pulled open the doors, trying his best to make his entrance as great as possible.  Nobody even noticed him._

            There was a reason for that.  The try-outs had started already, and the participants were running warm-up laps around the court.  Ryota dropped his bag and started to walk over to where the returning starters were sitting on the bench.  He hadn't taken more than a few steps when a paper fan landed heavily on his head.

            "Where the heck have you been?  You're half an hour late!  Even Mitsui-kun was here before you were."  Ayako screamed.  _I was right!  Already attracting attention._

            Ryota groaned.  "I'm sorry, Ayako, but I've been held up with a previous engagement."  The fact of the matter was, though, that he had been out eating lunch, and stopped at a comic book store.

            Ayako shook her head.  She mumbled something about a mistake in choosing Akagi's successor.  Ryota also heard something... a prayer?

            She sighed.  "Well, get changed, and _try to act like a captain, Ryota."  Ayako walked off, still shaking her head._

            Hanamichi had snuck up to Ryota's side.  He elbowed Ryota in the ribs, "You might as well turn the leadership to me, Ryota," he said, quietly.

            "Shut up, Hana."  Ryota shoved him away and headed to the locker room to change.  When he came back up, the sight was very discouraging.

            Mitsui, the senior that he is, was talking to some of the girls that had come to watch the try-outs.  Hanamichi was barking at the new kids like a drill instructor.  Rukawa had fallen asleep on the bleachers.  Haruko, the ditz, still had a grin on her face, shouting words of encouragement.  Ayako had just collapsed in resignation, head buried in her hands, one of the players from last year fanning her with her fan.  The players trying out were equally as hopeless.  Some were dribbling the ball off their feet.  Many didn't know which way was the front.  Still some didn't even look like they wanted to be there.  There were a couple who looked like they knew what they were doing, but were too busy showing off for the girls on the sidelines.  Ryota suddenly was very concerned for the future of this team.

            Haruko turned to face the captain.  She smiled weakly.  "I was hoping we'd have a captain for this team.  We need a lot of help."

            Ryota, accepting the responsibility, or curse, strode towards the group, puffing himself up in confidence that he did not feel.  He took the whistle from Ayako, who at this point was nervously gulping down stress-relieving pills.  Ryota put the whistle to his mouth and blew once.  Hard. 

            The sharp piercing scream of the whistle grabbed everyone's attention.  _It's a start...  Ryota squared his shoulders and forced as much authority as possible into his voice._

            "I would like to welcome everyone to Shohoku basketball.  My name is Miyagi Ryota.  I'm sure all of you have names as well, but frankly, we don't have the time to learn them."  He paused a moment for drama before continuing.  "The try-outs will last for the next 3 or 4 days, depending on whether or not we need the time to decide who will make the team.

            "Believe me, gentlemen, it will be the most exhausting four days of your life."  Ryota hated to be so dramatic, but he wanted everyone to understand that Shohoku was very serious about the National Title this year.  He continued, "If anyone feels that they don't want to participate, the doors are to your right.  Don't let it hit you on your way out."

            He took a deep breath as a handful of people did walk out.  Some remained.  Ryota released his breath and continued, "Well, for the rest of you, go get a drink of water, and stretch, the try-outs start in five minutes."

            Ryota turned to talk to the returning players.  "Guys, as you can see, we have a lot of work to do," he gestured with his hand to take in the whole of the gym, "and I need help from each and everyone of you."  Ryota smiled confidently, "We _will be the best."_

            Everyone seemed to be listening, even Hanamichi, which was very encouraging.  Ryota glanced again at Ayako, who now seemed to have recovered and was busy fanning herself.  He turned to look at the door as everyone returned.  He opened his mouth to speak, but Hanamichi interrupted him.

            "We'll start with lay-up lines, everyone gather around here."  He waited patiently for everyone gather to his half of the court.  "Heh heh.  Now, watch as Tensai will perform the lay-up shot."  Hanamichi picked up a ball and started to dribble it.  "Now, watch carefully."

            Even before Hanamichi had taken two steps, a paper fan hit him viciously on the head.  Ayako's voice screamed.  "_You are not the captain.  Sit down and be quiet!"_

            Ryota was eternally grateful for the paper fan that had the ability to bring order in any situation.  Repressing a grin as Hanamichi sulked off, he turned to the group.  "Now, the lay-up is one of the most basic shots in basketball.  As such, it should be at least vaguely familiar to all of you."  Ryota sensed impending doom as some of the would-be players meekly studied their sneakers.  "Does anyone know how to shoot a lay-up?" he asked the group with a hint of hope in his voice.

            One of the boys from the group stepped forward.  Ryota had to admit, he was a little taken aback that this particular boy had stepped forward.  This one was not particularly tall; he was taller that Ryota was, but he was barely as tall as Mitsui was.  Nor was he in a spectacularly good shape.  He was rather... well, he was rather fat.  _No, not... fat, just really bulky.  Ryota found himself wondering what position this boy would play.  Ryota watched with a bemused expression on his face as the stodgy individual worked his way to the top of the key.  The fluidity with which he carried himself belied his power and grace.  The rest of the team gathered around to watch this newcomer attempt the lay-up._

            The bearish boy dribbled the ball he had been carrying in his arm.  He eyed the basket like a bull watching a red flag.  He lowered his stance and started charging to the basket.  He began to pick up speed as a freight train would.  In a few heartbeats time, he had already reached the basket and leapt up off his left foot.  With a feathery soft touch that many would have sworn was impossible for someone his bulk, the boy laid the ball into the basket and landed _lightly on the ground and recovered the ball before it touched the ground._

            Ryota was impressed and secretly thankful that he was able to find a player with such size and mobility.  He sauntered over to where the boy was standing, underneath the basket.

            Ryota offered his hand, "That was an impressive lay-up.  What's your name?"

            "My name is Takashi Noru."  Noru's paw engulfed Ryota's relatively small hand.

            Ryota looked up and gave the bigger boy a firm smile and turned to the rest of the first years.  "That's a lay-up.  Basically, you jump off your left leg, and shoot with your right hand, vice versa for the left." He paused a moment before continuing.  "Get into two even lines, on either side of the lane."  Ryota waited for them to do so and gave the last of the instructions.  "The ball starts on the left side.  The person with the ball will pass it to the opposite player on the other line, and the other person will proceed to take a layup.  The player from the left side will get the rebound and pass it back to the shooter.  The shooter than gives the ball to the next person in the left side, the non-shooting side and also join that line."  Ryota motioned for Mitsui and Rukawa.  "These two guys will demonstrate."

            Ryota half expected Hanamichi to burst while the two took up their positions.  He didn't disappoint.

            "Hey, how come you make the Fox do the lay-up?  Don't you think I could do better?!"

            Ryota turned to reply, but Haruko beat him to it.  "Calm down, Hanamichi-kun, you'll get your chance."

            Hanamichi seemed to relax a little bit.  Then he grinned as if a sudden revelation hit him.  "The lay-up drills are probably beneath my skills anyway.  I'll save my abilities for my dunks."  Hanamichi chuckled quietly until he heard Rukawa mutter under his breath, 'Do aho.'  Hanamich exploded at the Fox calling him an idiot and dove for him.  Rukawa sidestepped easily and proceeded to ignore him.  Hana was about to attack him again when he was wrapped up by the rest of the team.

            "Hanamichi, calm down or we'll have to tie you down, all right?"  Ryota said, meanwhile, Ayako was furiously working on Hanamichi's head with her paper fan.  _I wonder if keeping him on the team is worth the trouble we're going through.  Ryota sighed.  __We'll find out once we get the scrimmages going._

_            Once the struggle subsided, Rukawa and Mitsui demonstrated the drill, and the freshmen proceeded to perform the drill.  Only a few of them knew how to shoot a lay-up, but fortunately, many of them learned the drill after only a few incidents.  __Well, at least no one got hurt... yet._

_            Ryota proceeded to run through a few more drills, albeit unsuccessfully.  The rest of the line drills went okay, the left handed lay-ups, the jump shots.  But they couldn't seem to get the three-man weave pattern down.  The three man weave was with three people, obviously, and the ball started in the middle man.  When the whistle blew, the drill would start.  The two other people, who were a fair distance away on either side of the middle man, would start ahead.  Then, the middle man would pass the ball to the left person, or the right, and go __behind the man to whom he passed.  Then, the person who received the ball would proceed to replace the middle man and pass it to the third person, and go behind him as well, the third person and second switching places.  This would create a weave pattern.  It would start from one end of the court to the other, and one person would take a lay-up.  He would get the his own rebound, and he'd be the middle man, and the pattern would start back again.  If it sounds confusing on paper, well, it is confusing, probably more so to actually do the drill.  That was painfully evident as Ryota found out.  Ryota was frustrated, and decided to turn to something requiring less skill._

            He started the agility drills.  He divided sorely depleted ranks into three different groups.  He assigned one group to Mitsui and the other to Ayako, the last to himself.  Mitsui's group was doing laps around the court.  During those laps, each person had to hold the ball over his head.  That may not sound like such a grueling task, but holding a ball that high for an extended period of time is exhausting, to say the least.  Ayako's group had to do _chops.  Each person had to squat into a defensive stance; right hand up by the shoulder, and left hand extended for balance, feet apart for balance, knees slightly bent, lowering the center of gravity.  In that position, they would, well, run in place, for the lack of a better description.  It was kind of like chopping, with the feet, if that makes any sense.  When Ayako blew the whistle, and gestured with her left, or right hand, depending on her mood, the group as a whole would have to turn quickly in the direction indicated and turn back just as quickly, feet still__ chopping.  The third group, Ryota's group, would do jump ropes._

            Each group would run through their respective drills for a few minutes, then rotate, the first group would to chopping, then jump ropes, so on and so forth.  The run would continue for 45 minutes before stopping.  Many of them were horribly out of shape, Ryota noted.  A few still were standing, despite the heavy breathing, but most looked like they had ran in the marathon.

            Ryota shook his head and spoke to the group, "Go, grab a drink of water.  We'll run scrimmages when you get back."  As the recruits turned, rather slowly, to replenish their bodily fluids, Ryota turned to his own group and walked to the bench.  He sat down and cradled his hand in his head, palms pressing into his eyes.  _This is going to be a very, very long season._

            One by one, the recruits trickled back in.  Red faced and exhausted, they slowly began to stretch themselves.  Actually, it was the ones that actually had sports experience that started and the others begun to follow, if only to look like they knew what they were doing.  Ryota wearily pulled the whistle into his mouth and blew, to signal the start of the scrimmages.


	9. Chapter 9

            The scrimmages pitted the recruits against themselves.  Coach Taoka of the Ryonan squad divided up the freshmen into four teams with five on each team.  He was joined on the sidelines by Akira Sendoh, who after Jun Uozumi, would take the captaincy.  Also present were two other seniors, Koshino and Fukuda.  Lee didn't know what position Koshino played, but he'd heard that Fukuda plays the power forward spot.  Looking away from the spectators, he focused on his opponents.

            Coach Taoka matched Lee up with a squad of freshmen and some second year players.  One the other team, Lee spotted the point guard; a boy taller than himself, but not quite as quick.  During the drills, he seemed to know what he was doing, but as preoccupied he was, Lee didn't really get a chance to see the other boy's abilities, making it impossible to predict the match up.  The four other boys were made up of a skinny boy who looked like he should be at a library then a gym.  Another, who was quite tall, taller even, than Sendoh, with the hair and all.  Another, a well built boy.  Lee noted this one, especially because he had seen him before on the playgrounds and exhibited some skill.  Lee didn't know his name, so in his mind Lee tagged him as Red, for the shirt he was wearing.  Lee also recalled that he was a second year student.  The last boy was another who looked like he didn't belong there, not so much due to his appearance, but because he looked like he didn't _want to be there.  Lee noted that he wore a green shirt, so he tagged him as Green._

            On his team, he had Hideyoshi.  Lee was unaware Hideyoshi even played basketball, but during the drills, Hideyoshi exhibited solid athleticism and a positive attitude towards the game.  Lee knew what it was.  Hideyoshi wasn't a basketball player, but he was an athlete.  The kind that plays well, but not outstandingly in all kind of sports.  Lee was a little dismayed at the rest of his team though.  He had a portly young boy, a boy that looked like a football player and another skinny boy.  As Lee looked around he saw that the skinny boy was the tallest of them, and he was only a few centimeters taller than Hideyoshi, who himself was only a smidge taller than Lee.  _So, we're outmatched and outsized... good odds, if I want to make an impression._

_            Lee called his squad into a huddle and immediately took charge.  He didn't know what it was, but on the court, Lee had the tendency to take control, be a leader.  He gestured to Chubsy.  "You guard that kid in the green shirt.  Stay in front of him, and __keep your hands up."  Lee turned to the skinny boy.  "You can guard that skinny kid on the other team.  Don't worry so much about the ball, just stay with him."  He looked at the football player and gave him his assignment.  "You get the tall kid.  I know his a lot taller than you are, but just put your body on him and don't let him get too close to the basket, okay?"  Finally, he turned to Hideyoshi, "You and I get the two last boys.  You get Red and I'll get the point guard."  He turned his attention to the whole team.  "Now, remember.  Run hard, and you'll get the ball.  Just play tough defense and run."  Lee took a deep breath.  "We're going to win this, I know it.  Let's go."_

            The scrimmage began with a jump ball, which the other team won easily.  Lee dropped into a crouch and extended his hands for balance and wiggled his fingers like feelers to sense the picks.  He called out to his team, "Call out the picks, guys."

            The other point guard, who notably had a front part with the front bangs dyed blond, brought up the ball.  Lee concentrated on Blondie's whole body, rather than any part of him.  Blondie passed the ball to Red, and he held the ball just outside the three point arc on the right side, the opposite side of where the Coach sat.  Red didn't seem too concerned with teamwork as he went to work on Hideyoshi.  Hideyoshi, with naturally born reflexes and defense developed from playing other sports, managed to herd Red to a bundle of players.  When Red had nowhere to go, he tried to pass the ball back out, but Hideyoshi got a hand on it to deflect it and Lee grabbed it out of the air and took off to the other end.

            Lee went down the right wing of the court and noticed that Blondie had caught up with him.  Lee also noted when looked behind him, Hideyoshi was also coming.  So, Lee accelerated even more, still maintaining the dribble.  Lee knew that Hideyoshi was faster than he was, so when he reached the key at the other end, he cut across the lane, right to left, with Blondie still tracking him.  As he reached the other end, he gently lofted the ball behind the back to Hideyoshi, still looking away, _he had better be there... Lee thought.  Hideyoshi caught the ball right in stride and went up to lay the ball in with the right hand, despite being left handed.  Lee and Hideyoshi let out a little laugh and exchanged high fives as they ran back the other end to play defense._

            Red came back with the ball, still not too concerned with teammates, and drove hard to his left, or from Lee's point of view, to the far right.  Red pulled up to take the shot but missed, and Lee chased down the rebound and ran down court again.  This time though, Red also decided to give chase, so Lee slowed down.  He slowly pulled the ball back out, to the head of the key.  He waited for his teammates to get settled.  Lee made a whirling motion with his index finger held up and yelled.  "Move around, guys."

            He waited as his teammates made an effort to get open.  He saw his opportunity when the other skinny boy, obviously lost on defense, had drifted all the way up to where Blondie was.  Exploding to his right, he caught both Blondie and Slim off guard, and they ended up running into each other.  Lee didn't slow down as he neared the basket and went up strong to put in the layup.

            The first two points of the scrimmage were scored by Lee's team.  That said, Blondie began to take better care of the ball, and Red started to look for his teammates.  Looking down low to the big man, they managed to reel off three points, on his scoring alone.  Lee pulled the football player aside.  "Come on, man, you've gotta push him out.  Here, you guard Blondie and I'll get your man."  Lee slapped him on the shoulder as he trotted away and took the inbounds pass from Hideyoshi.

            They went on to miss that shot on Chubsy's short jumper.  Blondie came charging down, but was mildly surprised when he saw the football player on him rather than Lee.  Smiling he turned to look at the big man, but frowned when he saw that he couldn't get closer to the basket.  Lee gritted his teeth against the pain in his back as he struggled to keep the taller boy from the basket.  Earlier, he had told Hideyoshi to come over and help out on defense and try to steal the ball when the taller boy tried to dribble.  So, when the ball came into the paint, Hideyoshi was effectively double teaming, and that specific threat was neutralized.  _Only for the moment though, Lee grimaced, __I don't know how long my back will hold._

            The other team still managed to score, especially when Hideyoshi came over to double, the taller boy simply passed it back out to Red who managed to hit the shot.  And the score slowly separated, to 9 to 5, with 11 being the game point.

            Lee, having fallen behind, was furious.  He turned to his team.  "Come on guys, we're down four points, and they only have to score 2 more.  We have _got to play defense, come on!"  Lee clapped his hands for emphasis.  If that speech had any kind of effect, it was couterproductive, as the other team went by easily to score._

            Lee, being driven by pure desperation, began to play with reckless abandon.  As soon as he got the ball, he charged down to the other end, blowing by defenders with ease, and went on to score.  On defense, he was all over the court, at times leaving his man wide open.  The gamble had payed off, though, as he managed to deflect the ball to Hideyoshi, who immediately gave the ball back.  Lee paused a moment as he crossed half court, and waited for his teammates.  Hideyoshi came to Lee's left and set a pick.  As Lee went around it, Hideyoshi rolled off and got open, and Lee passed the ball to him.  As both defenders turned to Hideyoshi, he had passed the ball back to Lee and Lee scored on a mid range jumper.

            Again on defense, Lee matched up with Blondie again.  Fatigue burned at his legs, and Blondie took advantage, blowing by him on Lee's left.  Lee turned and gave chase, and when Blondie cocked the ball back, Lee swiped it away, retrieving and throwing a lead pass to Hideyoshi, who had uncannily expected Lee to get the ball.  Hideyoshi scored with a lay up, bringing the score to 10 to 8.

            This time on defense, Hideyoshi and the football player had managed to trap Blondie at half court.  As he desperately looked to pass it to Red, Lee snatched the ball in mid-air and started a three-on-one fastbreak going the other way.  With the football player on his right and Hideyoshi on his left, Lee slowed ever so slightly, letting the two get ahead of him.  He threw up a lob to the football player on his right, to reward him for running so hard.  However, in his excitement, the football player missed the lay-up, the ball rolling off the rim.  Lee trailed the play, and leapt to grab the rebound and tipped it to Hideyoshi, who managed to score again.

            The score, 10 to 9.  This time on defense, Red got a pass from Blondie and went up to shoot, only to be rejected by Hideyoshi.  Lee dove on the floor to retrieve the ball and got up dribbling.  He trotted across half court.  He shook his defender with a wicked crossover, left to right and blew right by him.  He stutter stepped around another defender.  Coming in from the right side, he hop skipped across the lane, landing solidly on two feet and laying in a twisting lay-up before losing his balance and falling to the ground.  Lee pushed off the ground quickly and ran back to defense.

            Realizing that the score was tied, and they needed to score one more point to win, Lee turned to meet Blondie at half court. Acid began to burn at his legs, and his feet felt leaden.  The previous drills, combined with the game, were beginning to take their toll on him.  Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself further and this time, went after the steal.

            His hands flicked out hungrily, trying wolfishly to snatch the ball away.  Blondie was evidently taken aback, less by the desperate ferocity than the apparently infinite source of energy that drove this boy.  Lee, sensing the hesitation, chased Blondie all over the court.  Just when Lee thought his legs were going to give, Blondie made a mistake, crossing the ball over from his right hand, back to his left, where Lee was waiting.  Lee's eyes doubled in size and his pupils focused on the ball as his left hand sprung out instinctively to knock the ball away.  

            Lee sprinted after the ball and recovered it, not slowing down until he reached the basket at the other end and finishing the play with a lay-up that went in smoothly off the glass.  Lee let out a sigh of relief and exultation.  As much as he wanted to bask in glory of victory, exhaustion swept over him, washing away the last traces of adrenaline and suddenly, Lee began to shiver.  Fatigue and the fried rice he had for lunch welled up in his throat.  As hard as Lee tried, what energy he had was expended in the last run, and with a final heave, he threw up on the sidelines.


	10. Chapter 10

            Akira Sendoh found himself calmly nibbling on a slice of lemon in the locker room.  All about him was filled with activity.  Sitting with a towel draped over his shoulders, he again looked around the locker room.  Fukuda was quietly meditating in the corner, prepping for the upcoming match.  In his hand, Sendoh noticed a tennis ball, on which Fukuda was methodically squeezing on.  The coach had suggested that as  a part of anger management.  _Well, it seems to be working.  At least so far.  Sendoh allowed himself a small smile._

            To the right of Fukuda, the new boy Hideyoshi was stretching out.  He was wearing a headband, keeping the thick bush of hair out of his eyes.  Next to him was Lee, who was the most excited one of them all.  Having stretched already, he was now working on his ball-handling.  With his right hand, he was dribbling the ball rhythmically on the _wall.  Lee looked visibly anxious, impatient for the match to began.  Sendoh frowned slightly.  He was concerned that the rookie, who even Sendoh had to admit performed marvelously during the try-outs, would come out and try to do too much.  He quickly dismissed it though, since inside Lee's eyes, Sendoh had found the patience, the calm leadership, belying his skills as a point guard.  __This one is going to be good someday._

            Apart from those two, only two who had made the team, by the way, was a knot of returning players, who were joking amongst themselves.  Sendoh realized that they probably would not be playing too much, since the freshmen had already exhibited more skill and heart than they had.  Sendoh was disappointed that Toriyuki Uekusa had not returned.  His skills and experience would have been invaluable in teaching Lee to become a real point guard.  However, Uekusa had decided to further pursue his studies, leaving Lee to start, and Sendoh to mentor him.

            He completed the circle and looked to his right.  Sitting the was Hiroaki Koshino.  He was dependent, and also the only other senior other than Fukuda and himself.  Koshino was elected as co-captain, along with Sendoh.  Although Koshino wasn't an exceptional player, he had tremendous leadership abilities, and an amiable personality.  He was going to form the heart of the group, Sendoh noted.

            Coach Taoka and Aida Hikoichi weren't here yet.  They were still busy working out some business with the refs, and the other coaches.  Sendoh had never really paid much attention to what they did; he played basketball, and played well, and that was all that was required of him.

            Just then, Coach Taoka and Hikoichi entered the locker room.  Coach Taoka went on to explain that this was a scrimmage, against Kainan.  Then, he proceeded to go into a whole pep talk about the expectations this year, the goals, and how to get there.  _The same speech as last year.  Coach may be a tactical genius, but isn't much of a motivational speaker.  Sendoh sighed.  Three years of the same exact speech was beginning to wear on him._

            Soon, the speech was over, and the team went out to the arena.  It was an away match, at the Kainan school, and as such, the colors that adorned the court was unfamiliar to Sendoh.  Tossing away the rind of the lemon he had been sucking on, he turned to the two rookies.

            "Okay guys, this is the start of a new season.  Ryonan High has held a tradition for quite sometime now."  He glanced sternly at the returning players who were giggling in the background, then turned back to the freshmen.  "We run a lap around the basketball court to warm up, and as tradition, the new players lead the way."

            This was an old trick that actually was a tradition of the Ryonan squad.  The freshmen, who knew nothing of this, would, rather naively, start running, but the rest of the team would stay back, leaving the freshmen to find out that they been had.  It was, for the team, the last step in the initiation sequence.  What had made it so effective was the fact that Sendoh had ordered the run.  As the best player in Ryonan, perhaps ever, he held quite an authority.  These two freshmen didn't disappoint.

            The two began the run, chanting, 'One, two, one, two' as they went.  It took but a moment for them to find out that the rest of the team had stayed back, the returning players laughing hysterically, and Sendoh with a satisfied grin.  The two grinned sheepishly, but much to Sendoh's surprise, they did not return.  Instead, they kept on running, despite the laughter from the crowd.

            Sendoh greeted the two with an approving look as they returned from the run, breathing evenly, if a slight bit out of breath.

            "Now, let's go out and do this right."

            The Ryonan team went out to the court and started the lay-up lines, to the cheers and boos of the crowd.  Some stopped to take the jumper while some, like Fukuda, went in for the dunk.  Sendoh held himself above such unnecessary display, shot around a bit then backed up a bit.  He was soon joined by Koshino.

            "So, what do you think of this group, Sen?"  He asked.

            Sendoh shrugged nonchalantly.  "Well, that Lee kid shows quite a bit of potential, and Hideyoshi does too."  He gestured with his chin toward Fukuda.  "He seems to have improved, and bulked up even more.  We're going to need that if we're going to do anything in the post."  He sighed and continued, "I just wish we had some sort of a center."

            Koshino nodded.  "Well, I guess we're going to play zone defense, probably Box and One."

            Sendoh was about to agree when he was interrupted by the explosion of cheers from the crowd as the Kainan squad entered the gym.  He looked over at the opposing team and took stock of the team.

            Despite the loss of Shinchi Maki, who had been Kainan's best, Kainan was still a strong team. Souchiro Jin, hailed as the best pure shooter in the league, led the quite formidable line up.  Kiyota Nobunga was next, playing the small forward spot.  He wasn't bad, but not quite up to the caliber of the truly elite.  Despite that, his ability to score and the intensity with which he played was more than enough.  As the top seeded team in Kanagawa, they were able to recruit some exceptional rookies.  There was the giant, Yakuso Mouta.  Standing tall at 2 meters he was a formidable rebounding and shot blocking force, as well as a low post threat.  His only weaknesses were his lack of maturity, and the lack of speed.  Then there was the point guard, Yamatomo Kuroi.  He was notably quick with a knack for getting to the basket.  He lacked the pass-first mentality of a true point guard, though.  They also had another swingman in Katamo Hiro, who had transferred from another school..  He was known as the Lock, for his exceptional defense; the ability to just _lock a man down._

            Sendoh grimaced in spite of himself.  _They have so many weapons, and they can also get out and run, too.  I want to make them take outside shots but Jin will knock them down.  We're going to have to play man to man, and double team in the post._

_            The starting players were announced.  Akira Sendoh, Kicchou Fukuda, Hiroaki Koshino, Ando Hideyoshi, and Otoshi Lee._

            Both teams took their positions on either side of the half court line.  Fukuda took the position for the jump against Mouta.  The referee blew the ball and tossed the ball up into the air.  Fukuda got too impatient and jumped for the ball too early, only swiping at air as he came down.  Mouta easily gained control of the jump and tipped it back to Kuroi.

            Sendoh backpedaled to protect the basket whiled Kainan went left to right, towards the Ryonan bench.  Lee stepped forward to meet Kuroi.  Kuroi got a pick from Hiro, who was guarded by Hideyoshi.  Hiro came to set the screen on Lee's right hand side, and Kuroi stepped around it.

            "Switch!"  Lee shouted.  And Hideyoshi immediately stepped in to block Kuroi's way.  Lee also recovered from the pick, and came to trap Kuroi out beyond the three point arc.  Kuroi, with nowhere to go, tried to pass the ball to Hiro, who was open, but Hideyoshi got a hand on it, knocking it towards Lee, who picked it up and ran down court on the left side, with Hideyoshi following on the right side.  Lee accelerated as if going in for the lay-up himself, and Kuroi was hot on his heels.  Suddenly, Lee dropped the ball back, still looking away, finding Hideyoshi who scored with the lay up.

            In all honesty, Sendoh was quite impressed at the way the two rookies handled that.  _Maybe the future of Ryonan isn't so grim after all.  _

            The next trip down from Kainan was much more controlled.  The ball went in the post to Mouta, who backed down Fukuda.  Sendoh came over to double, but the center passed the ball back out to Jin, who had come off a double screen.  He stepped back behind the arc and fired one, finding all twine.

            Cheers erupted from the crowd and Sendoh frowned.  _I didn't want Jin to get into a rhythm, but he hit the first shot.  It's going to be that much harder now to stop him._

_            Ryonan came back on the attack, the ball in Lee's hands.  He passed it to Sendoh and cleared out to the left wing, opposite where Sendoh was.  It was one of Ryonan's strategies, to let Sendoh have it on the wing on an isolation play.  With Sendoh's unstoppable ability to put the ball in the basket, combined with his uncanny passing abilities, Coach Taoka was hoping Sendoh could initiate the offense._

            Sendoh got the ball on the right wing and found himself guarded by Nobunga.  He simply smiled and stood up from his lowered position, as if taking a little break.  Nobunga also relaxed, and Sendoh smiled even more.  He quickly lunged forward, catching Nobunga off guard and making him reel back.  He then retreated to his former position, and fired the three pointer.  The released felt good as he snapped his wrist down.  He looked at the basket and was rewarded with the pleasing sound of synthetic leather slicing through nylon.

            The crowd was shocked at Sendoh's ability to score, especially without moving a step from where he had originally been, when he received the ball.

            Sendoh wiped the grin off his mouth.  "Grim up guys, we still have a long way to go."  Which was true, since the game clock indicated that they were merely a minute and a half into the game.

            And the game continued, both teams trading baskets, turnovers, misses.  Jin was having a hard time of it once Sendoh decided to guard him.  The ball continued to go inside to Mouta, who scored or passed to the cutting Nobunga for the score.  On the other end, Sendoh was seeing a lot of double teams, but he was able to pass out of it to Koshino, Lee or Hideyoshi.  A few times he had tried to pass it to Fukuda, but Fukuda constantly frustrated by the shot blocking of Mouta.

            Then, Kainan started to get Jin the ball even more.  Sendoh was constantly caught in jarring picks and screens, and was quite tired of chasing Jin all over the court.  Jin, finally getting some clean looks at the basket, unleashed a hail of three pointers, most of which found their mark.  With nine minutes left in the first half, Kainan was up 39 to 27.  At this point, Jin had scored 16 points, 12 of them from 4 three pointers.  Sendoh on the other hand, only had 12, Lee 6, Hideyoshi 5, and Koshino 4.  Fukuda was yet to score, but he was able to grab 6 rebounds already, 2 of them offensive.

            Sendoh began to get worried.  Jin was starting to heat up, and was now hitting shots with hands in his face.  Sendoh worked to get himself more actively involved, setting picks, rolling off them and hitting shots.  He got the ball more on the wing, breaking out a dazzling array of fade aways and dunks.  In the space of seven minutes, he had closed the score to 51 to 45.

            Ryonan was on offense again.  Sendoh glanced at the clock and saw that it read 1:39.  Sendoh knew it was important for them to be no more than 4 points down.  Again, Sendoh had the ball on the wing.  He was guarded tightly by Hiro.  Gritting his teeth, he faked the jumper.  When Hiro began to react, Sendoh used that opportunity to get by him, then getting around Nobunga.  He went up to take a shot against Mouta, when he was hammered by Nobunga from behind.  He knocked into Mouta, and came down, landing awkardly on his ankle.  He tried to spin with the fall to lessen the impact on his ankle, but Nobunga also came down, _on Sendoh's ankle.  Sendoh's attempted roll went out of control as pain ripped up through his right leg, into his brain, and back into his ankle.  His mind was devoid of anything except the pain, and a thousand different curses._


	11. Chapter 11

            Lee knew how good Akira Sendoh was.  In his freshman year, Sendoh was proclaimed as the Rookie Sensation, a basketball genius, the Savior who was going to lead Ryonan to the National Championship and from there, to the win the title.  And honestly, Lee believed that this would be the year.

            But knowing and actually understanding are two different things.  Tonight, Lee understood.

            In many of the plays, the ball found itself in Sendoh's hands, and more often then not, it then found its way to the basket.  Sendoh put on a stunning display of offensive scoring, tearing through the defense, then taking a step back and draining the jumper.  Even before the game, the opponents were intimidated, and Sendoh exploited that advantage.

            What Sendoh's firepower did was that it drew the attention of the defense to him, leaving the other teammates open.  And Sendoh, with his pinpoint passing, found the open man again and again, frustrating the defense.  Lee almost pitied the Kainan defense as Sendoh methodically, and boldly, took it apart.

            And this time, Lee took himself out of the play, to give Sendoh more room to work with.  As Sendoh got by Hiro, Lee's hope soared.  Then it came crashing down along with Sendoh.

            Nobunga had come from behind Sendoh and hammered him, intending to take him out of the game.  Then, as Sendoh began to roll, Nobunga came down on his ankle, at the very least, fracturing it.

            Lee stood by helplessly as the team fell apart like Sendoh's ankle.

            Fukuda immediately confronted Nobunga, and the two got in a shoving match, that Koshino was desperate to stop.  Lee watched as Hideyoshi also got into and the rest of the bench as well came to join the brawl.  _Oh, god, no, this can't be happening._

_            And the rest of the game proceeded in much the same manner.  Whatever elegance and order it held, it was quickly dispersed.  Half time did nothing to calm any of the players.  There came a series of fouls, and the pace slowed down because of it.  Lee found that he could do nothing to control the game.  __With so many fouls, the game stops every two minutes and it's hard to get anything started, much less maintained.  It's like a child, playing the piano for the first time, there just isn't any continuation._

_            Lee tried even to force some offense by driving to the hoop, but he was met with frustrating defense.  Occasionally, he was able to break through, then he was fouled and thrown to the ground.  Which, unfortunately, turned out to be extremely effective.  Lee couldn't find the basket on the free throws.  Jin continued to hit shots, with hands, sometimes the whole team in his face.  He was in a zone... however Lee was more or less in a rut._

            The game was over the moment Sendoh went down.  They were just too stubborn to admit it.  The final score, 93 to 64.  Jin ended up with 36 points, on 12 of 21 shooting, 7 of 12 from behind the arc.

            Lee managed 7 assists, but had 5 turnovers, and only 12 points on just 5 of 17 shooting.


	12. Chapter 12

            The initial tests weren't very promising, Lee found out.  Sendoh's ankle _was a fracture and it would be at least 4 to 6 weeks till he recovered.  __That's well into the regular season.  Suddenly, the future isn't looking so bright anymore.  Lee somehow tried to find a silver lining in a very dark cloud as he walked out of the building for lunch.  At Ryonan, as well as a few other schools, the students were allowed outside of the building during lunch, just not allowed outside of the gates that surrounded the school._

            Ryonan High had a particularly beautiful campus, with plenty of trees and grass, creating a very down-to-earth type of atmosphere.  Today, especially, with the bright sun and the cool breezy air, Lee found it relatively hard to maintain a depressed spirit.

            Lee frowned.  He hadn't brought his lunch today, and his stomach told him how stupid he was.  But he dismissed it just as quickly.  _It's not like I planned on eating today, he thought as he strolled through the campus, hands in his pockets.  Not long ago, he found out that a group of people were playing basketball on the outdoor courts behind the school building; which was where he was headed now._

            Thinking about basketball brought him back to thinking about the game the previous day.  He just couldn't get into the rhythm of the game.  So he tried to force it, and only found himself getting frustrated. _ A basketball game is like music.  I can't force anything, I have to let it take me, only then, can I truly take control.  In retrospect, Lee had played less like a point guard that game then than he had other times.  He felt distant and uncomfortable, which caused his teammates to be affected and the whole team fell apart, literally._

            Lee was snapped out of his reverie when a hand tapped him not-so-gently on the shoulder.  Lee tripped a little bit and stumbled forward, before regaining his balance and looking back at his oppressor.  He was greeted with a radiant smile.

            "Afternoon, Akari-chan," he mumbled, addressing her in the more informal manner.  He had taken to using Minou's first name a few days ago, as their friendship progressed.

            Akari Minou's smiled diminished slightly at Lee's rather aloof response.  "Are you okay?" She asked after a moment.

            Lee turned to look at her, but did not speak.  He merely shrugged and continued to walk.  At this, Minou was a more than a little miffed.  She didn't let that get to her, though and caught up in a few quick strides.  She came up on his right side and slipped her left arm throught the crook of his arm.  Lee glanced at her but didn't pull away.  After a few moments, Minou spoke again.

            "I saw your game the other day," she said quietly.

            He didn't reply, silently wishing she hadn't.  She continued.

            "You didn't do so well."

            Lee flinched visibly at that comment.  Minou evidently caught the reaction, and turned apologetic.

            "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it to be mean."  She waited for a reaction from Lee but all she got was a little nod.  Ignoring the distant manner in which Lee treated her, she continued.  "I don't know much about basketball, but I did notice something."  

            Lee raised one eyebrow quizzically, and waited for her to finish.

            "You didn't look like you were having any fun."

            The simplicity of that statement stunned Lee.  _It's true, I wasn't having fun while I was playing.  Suddenly, he felt a little guilty at the way he had treated her.  All she was trying to do was help, which she managed, gracefully at that, and he just being difficult.  __What an ass I am!  He took his right hand out of his pocket and put his arm around Minou, giving her a little squeeze, letting her know that he was okay._

            Lee looked down at the girl next to him, who was a good 10 cm shorter than himself, and smiled.           "I'm sorry I was so mean."

            She smiled back and replied, "You should be."

            Lee gave a small chuckle at that and continued to walk toward his destination.  

            Minou nudged him to get his attention and Lee turned to her.  "So, where are you going?" she asked.

            He gestured with his finger, towards the basketball court behind the school.  "I'm going to go play some basketball, wanna come watch?"

            The girl nodded, if a bit reluctantly, "Sure, I'd love to."  Lee absolutely beamed at the response and picked up a pace a bit more, in a childish enthusiasm.

            It was but a few more steps before they reached the basketball court.  Already there were a group of players, six to be exact, playing a three on three match.  Lee impatiently waited for the next "dead" ball, when the game stopped play, to ask if he could join the game.  The group turned to Lee with a guarded expression.  They did not know him personally, and that made them apprehensive.  After a moment of contemplation, one of the boys, who obviously was the leader, agreed to let him play.  Provided that Lee could find one more person.

            Lee looked around, but really couldn't find anyone else that wasn't already occupied doing something else.  Then, his eyes fell on Akari Minou.  Lee quickly stepped toward her and asked, "Will you play with us?"

            Minou, admittedly, was a little taken aback that Lee would ask in the first place.  After a moment of mild surprise, she tried to decline, but Lee would have none of it.

            "Come on, please?  It'll be fun, come on," Lee begged, taking her by the hand and tugging her towards the court.

            Minou glanced at the other kids, who obviously were enjoying every minute of it.  She almost agreed, too, just to spite them, until she remembered that she didn't know a thing about basketball.  Minou kept on insisting that it would be better if she just watched, despite Lee's growing dismay.  Then, another boy stepped into view.

            "Hey, what's going on here?" he asked, loud enough to be heard, but still quiet enough to be pleasant.  Lee turned to the voice, and in the process, letting go of Minou's hand, making her fall back.  Minou was dumped unceremoniously on her rear on to the green lawn and grunted in pain.

            "Oh, sorry," Lee apologized sheepishly, and Minou just smiled wryly in response.  Lee quickly turned his attention back to the boy and asked, "Hideyoshi, you wanna play with us?"

            Hideyoshi looked around at the knot of half-dozen boys and back at Lee.  He let a smile play on his lips and agreed, much to Lee's delight.

            And the game began again, this time, both teams running the full length of the court.  Lee had taken his blazer off and had unbuttoned the top two buttons on his shirt and rolled up his sleeves.  Hideyoshi had likewise taken off his blazer, and his tie.

            As Minou watched the game, she began to see more and more how accustomed Lee was to the game.  He moved fluidly through the defense as a fish would cut throught the water.  And at that moment, Minou saw that not only basketball was a part of him, that _he was a part of the sport.__  He enjoys the game so much and he's so happy it's hard to imagine him not playing the sport.  It's like his ethnic background in that it's so much a part of him, but it's become larger than he is, and he's just as happy to be a part of it._

            She found herself immersed in the game as much as Lee was.  As she watched the game, it affected her as a piece of artwork or a concerto would.  For all purposes, it was a work of art, and Lee was the Da Vinci, so to speak; the ball his paintbrush, the basketball court, his blank canvass, his opponents and his teammates were the different colors which he controlled.  The tempo was his, the flow was his, and Minou was mesmerized by the ease with which he carried himself.

            Watching the game, she realized that beyond the aesthetic facet of his game, Lee played with a thirst, with an intensity that was unmatched by anyone on the court... except Hideyoshi.  _Both of them are taking this further than a simple lunch time game.  They both want to win so badly, even at the littlest thing.  And through this competition, they are constantly making themselves better than they were before._

_            Soon enough, the bell signaling the end of the lunch hour rang.  Minou slowly got up and shouted to Lee, "Hey, Otoshi, we gotta go!"_


	13. Chapter 13

            Ryota was pacing back and forth anxiously in the locker room, waiting for the game to begin.  Anzai Sensei, their coach, had yet to arrive.  But that was the least of their problems, as he always liked to make an entrance.  No, the thing that was bothering the Shohoku captain was the divisiveness of the team that began to appear.  It first reared it's ugly head during the final few minutes of the last game, against a lower ranked team.  Shohoku took the game for granted and everyone tried to boost their own numbers.  The continuous selfishness led to the near defeat.  They barely managed to squeak by with a win, due largely to Rukawa's one man show down the final stretch of the game.  Which was a part of the problem.

            Ryota had hoped that the stint with the Japan's National Junior team had shown Rukawa the importance of teamwork.  Instead, it seemed to have the opposite effect.  Rukawa felt that it was up to him, personally, as one of Japan's best players, to lead Shohoku to victory and still had a tendency to try to take over a game.  This wasn't a team made up of Japan's brightest, so Rukawa believed he could depend on no one else except himself.

            The other competitive soul on the team, Hanamichi, was having none of it.  He still maintained his stubbornness about passing to anyone except Rukawa.  That caused obvious friction, but also costed some baskets.

            The captain of Shohoku buried his head in his hands.  Now this game against Kainan, who by the way, was coming off a big win against Ryonan, despite being a mere scrimmage, was going to be an accurate barometer of how Shohoku was going to perform against the good teams.  In terms of individual skill, Shohoku had an edge, but they needed some semblance of team work.

            A gentle click followed by a scraping sound caught the dismayed captain's attention.  When he brought his head up, Ryota saw the portly figure of coach Anzai walking into the locker room.  His eyes were obscured by the ever-present glare in his glasses and his round face exuded a sense of calm and gentleness.

            "Good afternoon, gentlemen," he paused a moment and acknowledged Ayako and Haruko with a nod, "and ladies."

            Everyone shouted their greetings back in unison, even Ryota, distressed as he was, couldn't help but respond.

            "I trust that everyone's ready for today's game?"  The elderly coach asked the question in a very mild manner, as if asking about the weather.  Again, everyone responded with a "yes."

            "Ho ho ho," he chuckled in the manner that was reminiscent of Santa Claus.  He continued, "I have nothing very inspiring to say to you.  All I want to say right now is just have fun out there, and play your best."  Again, the crowd responded.

            Ryota stepped in front of the group.  "Everybody gather around."  He waited as everyone got up and crowded around him.  "Teamwork on three, one, two, three..

            "Teamwork!"


	14. Chapter 14

            A gentle breeze tugged at Koshino's hair, but he didn't seem to notice.  He was in deep thought.  He had been since Sendoh got injured.  With him out for at least 4 weeks, Ryonan had suddenly become very weak, as if they weren't weak to start with.  _We didn't have much in the way of an inside game as it was, ever since Uozumi left.  After losing Sendoh, we're weaker than ever, since none of our guys are primary scorers, except for maybe Fukuda.  Koshino grimaced.  The bigger problem was the freshmen.  They risked starting the freshmen because they always had Sendoh to set things right, they had that luxury.  Now, Koshino wasn't sure if the team could afford that.  Which was why he was __here._

            He had been waiting in front of the library for quite some time now, into the brisk evenings of February.  He tugged his jacket tighter and wrapped his arms around himself to contain the quickly dissipating warmth.  _How does this guy stay in the library for so long!  It's 7 o'clock already.  This can't be very healthy for him at all.  As the wintery chill scraped his exposed skin, he almost just turned around and left.  Still, he kept saying to himself, __just one more minute._

            Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, although it really turned out to be five minutes according to his Timex wristwatch, a figure slowly walked out of the library, still in his school uniform, backpack slung over one shoulder.  Koshino got up quickly from his perch on the railings of the steps and caught up with the other boy.

            "Uekusa, wait up!"

            The boy turned around at the mention of his name.  Koshino noticed that Uekusa now wore a pair of wire-frame glasses.

            Koshino addressed the boy, "Uekusa, how you doing?"

            "I'm doing quite well, thanks."  A small smile tugged at the boy's lip.  "It's been a while, Kosh."

            "Yeah, it has.  So, how's school?" Koshino asked, if a bit awkwardly.

            "It's fine."

            "Yeah... hey, you got glasses!"  

            "I did.  I found out that I needed these for reading, mainly.  I don't wear them all the time though."

            "Can you still see on the court without them?"

            Uekusa's left eyebrow peaked.  "Yeah... why?"

            Koshino took a deep breath and explained the team's situation.  In the meanwhile, they proceeded back into the library where it was warmer.

            "... so, that's where we are," he finished.  _And here's the biggie.  "Why don't join the team again, Uekusa?"  Koshino waited as Uekusa's eyebrows furrowed in deep thought.  __After all this time, he's still apprehensive.  A minute passed in silence... then two... three._

            After a long wait, Uekusa began, "Look, Koshino, I appreciate your asking me.  I really do.  But I just don't know if I can come back yet.  I don't know if I'm ready."

            Well, Koshino had expected this.  Still, he was rather disappointed.  "Well, give it some time.  Feel free to join us any time; God knows we could use you."  Uekusa merely shrugged.

            "Anyway, I gotta be going.  I'll see you later, Uekusa."  And Koshino got up out of his chair and walked away, feeling tired, frustrated, and most of all, disappointed.

            In retrospect, Koshino understood why Uekusa made the decision that he made.  All through junior high, Uekusa had been hailed as one of the premier point guards in the league.  When he went to high school, regardless of where it was, it was certain that he'd be recognized by some of the most highly regarded schools.  He had a future.

            Ironically, he was recruited by Ryonan, one of the most prestigious schools in terms of basketball.  And the school that had recently recruited Akira Sendoh.  Also, the team already had one of the most powerful centers in the league in Jin Uozumi.  That sent Uekusa's career in a tail spin, and he fell into the obscurities of the shadows that Sendoh and Uozumi casted.  Hence, when the season ended, Uekusa made the decision of not returning, instead turning to other pursuits that interested him.  But Koshino knew that once a person fell into the grips of basketball, they didn't leave so easily.  He was betting on it...


	15. Chapter 15

            Time has passed again, a couple of weeks or more and the month is April.  The district regular season will start the upcoming Monday, giving the teams to prepare over the weekend.  On this brisk saturday morning, Lee was here already, in the Ryonan gym, an hour before practice began.  During the team practices, Lee couldn't get a chance to work on his weaknesses very often, so he used this time to sharpen his skills.  The rest of the scrimmage matches showed him where he needed more work.  So, he began shooting exercises.  First going around the basket no more than a foot or so away.  Then stepping back further and further until he had reached the three-point arc.  Then he began shooting from random spots on the court.  Finally, he ended the exercise with three-point shooting; he shot repeatedly, without much rest, until his arms were so sore that he couldn't shoot another three-pointer.  Then, he cooled down with some ball handling drills and manuevers, dribbling lower and lower until he finally came to a stop, sitting on the cold floor of the gym.

            Perspiration began to collect on his forehead and neck, as he sat breathing deeply in the brightly lit basketball court.  Lee removed his glasses and used his shirt to wipe the sweat off of them.  He held his glasses in his hands for a moment before putting them back on over his eyes.  He reflected quietly on the past scrimmage matches.  Ever since Lee had started to play basketball, he knew that he had been endowed with a gift.  When he stepped on the court, he just had this ability to see the _whole court.  That is, he more or less did have eyes on the back of his head.  And the court-vision, the ability to see every part of the court had allowed to find an open teammate almost every trip down the court.  But the thing that bothered Lee the most was that the teammates who were on the receiving end of the passes could not seem to finish the play and put the ball in the basket.  They either missed the shot or got the shot blocked by an opponent.  As far as Lee knew, when you got the ball in an open spot, you ought to be able to finish.  And his teammates inability to finish frustrated Lee.  So much so that he tried to take over games at the end.  Sometimes this was successful, sometimes, it wasn't.  __There's got to be a better way.  Lee grimaced.  __We can't hope to win consistantly if it's going to be just one person at the end._

            And he sat there, mulling over the possible solutions, none really better than the previous.  Lee looked up to the sound of the door sliding open.  _It's still half an hour 'till practice starts...  Lee smiled, however, when he recognized the figure that had stepped through the door.  The petite girl had on a white tank top that exposed her firm belly and a pair of spandex shorts that hugged her shapely curves.  She wore a smile on her face that made Lee's heart take off running like a gazelle.  Her forehead glistened with perspiration, no doubt from the 5 mile run the girl subjected herself to every now and then.  The light from the sun tracing her outline added a golden glow that added even more beauty and reinforcing Lee's belief that this girl must have been sent from heaven.  __With you here like this, how can I not believe in angels?_

_            "Good morning, Otoshi," she spoke as she came to sit beside him.  Her sweet voice was like the twilight as the sun sets, like a bird's morning song as the sun rises and like the first tinkling of running water when snow melts for the first time in the spring.  Such was the beauty of Akari Minou's voice that it took Lee's own away._

            Try as he might, he could not get his tongue to move in any way that would make any speech possible.  After a while, Minou spoke again.  "Otoshi?"

            Again, unable to respond, he just tilted his head to one side and gave her a lopsided grin.  In response, Minou also tilted her head and smiled quizzically.

            After a moment, Lee was finally able to manage a "Hi!"

            Chuckling, Minou returned the greeting, "Hi."

            Recovering fully now, Lee spoke with that lopsided grin that he was so famous for, "I'm sorry, I was just... ah... your stunning beauty just left me speechless.

            "Oh ho, good answer."  But Minou blushed slightly as she turned away, obviously pleased.

            Lee chuckled mischievously and continued, "Don't flatter yourself, Akari, I was just kidding."

            Akari Minou glanced over her left shoulder at Lee disdainfully before shoving him away and muttering, "Shut up."

            Lee just rolled with the momentum and stood up, picking the ball up in the process.  He looked at Akari and her deep, coffee colored eyes just pulled him in, and Lee could not help but drift back to the last time he had seen her...


End file.
